Dream symbols: Houses and buildings – and what they mean

Biblical meaning of houses, buildings, extensions, moving house, churches, office buildings, castles, hospitals, prisons, schools – in dreams.

We’ve all had those dreams: Dreams about our childhood home; dreams in scary old buildings; dreams of moving into a beautiful new house, etc…

I bet you have had some dreams like that! But have you ever wondered what they mean?

This article explores the most common spiritual meanings, and gives you some pointers so you can interpret them in your own dreams. We will also consider some bible references, and how to apply the dream meaning to our lives.

I approach dream interpretation from a biblical perspective. My belief is that our dreams can come from God, and understanding them is best understood within the context of an ongoing relationship with Him.

The symbolic nature of dreams

Firstly, if you have just come across this post and are new to dream interpretation, it is worth mentioning that dreams are symbolic in nature. You might find it helpful to read the following article: Understand your dreams: A bible-based introduction to dream language. Plus, see my FREE ultimate guide to Interpreting Dreams from God.

Secondly, remember that dreams are personal, so the meanings that I suggest may not apply to your specific dream. But please feel free to use my ideas as a springboard to thinking and praying about dreams yourself. Don’t take my ideas as gospel, but rather let them help you start to think metaphorically.

What does a house mean in my dream?

A house is actually one of the most common dream symbols, and is extremely helpful in the dream interpretation process. I have found that houses and buildings are one aspect of dreams that are fairly universal in their meaning! In fact, they are foundational dream symbols!

Houses and buildings are fairly universal in their meaning.

Often a dream takes place in a house, and so it provides the setting of the events. This can help us determine which area of our life the dream is about (I call this the real life context).

We normally live in a house, so a house often represents our life, or an aspect of our life. Occasionally it can represent another person (if the dream is set in their house). But even if it is set in someone else’s house, it could still be reflecting an area of our own life.

A house (or building) can also symbolise a group of people. This could be something that we are involved in like a church, workplace or other organisation. In this instance it is usually represented by a bigger house, or another type of building.

In this article I will focus on houses primarily, but at the end I will suggest some meanings for other buildings so you can get the general idea of how dream symbolism works in practice.

Meaning of houses in the bible

The bible is full of imagery and can help us understand dream symbols.

The apostle Paul describes our physical (earthly) body as a tent or house:

• Corinthians 5:1, NASB For we know that if our earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made by hands, eternal in the heavens.

A family is sometimes describes as a ‘household’. The word translated ‘household’ in the verse below means a house or physical dwelling place. But we can see that it also refers to the people belonging to that household:

• Genesis 7:1, NASB Then the Lord said to Noah, “Enter the ark, you and all your household, for you alone I have seen to be righteous before Me in this generation.

A building can symbolise the people who meet there

A church or Christian group, is sometimes referred to in the bible as a ‘house of God’:

• 1 Peter 2:5, NASB You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

It is important to remember that a church (or any organisation) is the people and not the building. But, paradoxically, the building can be used in dreams to symbolise the people who meet there!! This imagery – of a building representing a person or group of people – can be extended to any family or organisation.

The imagery of a building representing a person or group of people can be extended to any family or organisation.

We will now consider some specific examples of buildings, to help us start to think symbolically!

Dream symbol: Houses

A familiar house in a dream

Dreaming of an actual house we have lived in is very helpful in telling us what part of our life the dream is about.

• OUR CURRENT HOUSE: This is usually about something that is happening currently in our life, or relevant to our current situation.
• A CHILDHOOD HOME: I find that if we dream about a childhood home, it is generally about our character and identity – because these things were formed early on in life.

From a personal perspective: This often works out as me being my current age, but the dream is set in my childhood home. This usually means the dream is about an aspect of my character/identity which is relevant to my life now. It could be something helpful or unhelpful, depending on the context!

• A FORMER HOME: Any former home that we have lived in, including a childhood home, can be about things in our character (and issues that we face) that originated from the time we lived in that house.

An unfamiliar house in a dream

It’s quite common to dream that we are in a house that is ‘supposedly’ our house, but actually isn’t. This happens because the house is representing our life, or an area of our life.

Often we ‘know’ that it is meant to be our house. But it’s worth stopping to reflect on what the house actually looked like in the dream. Was it really our house, or did it look different in the dream? (This is a useful exercise and works for any dream element, not just houses!)

It is worth stopping to reflect on what an element actually looks like in the dream. Do we ‘know’ that it is somewhere/someone, but it isn’t really? This is a BIG clue that it is symbolising something else.

In this case, or if it is just a random house/building, it is more important to note other details. These things can help us work out what area of life it represents – and why our dream is set there!

Extensions, renovations and moving house in dreams

Our lives are in a constant state of growth and adaptation as we are transformed into the image of Christ. Our dreams often act like a mirror, revealing our blind spots and helping us succeed. That’s what dreams about work being done on houses are all about! They can encourage us, but also reveal things that need to change.

• Romans 12:2 (TPT) Be inwardly transformed by the Holy Spirit through a total reformation of how you think. This will empower you to discern God’s will as you live a beautiful life, satisfying and perfect in his eyes.

If we have this type of dream it can put us on alert, so we can keep our spiritual ears open, asking God to show us what it relates to.

• HAVING WORK DONE: E.g. an extension or renovation. This indicates that work is going on in our life: either we are expanding / growing in certain areas, or working on our character. Conversely, knocking part of a building down could be highlighting thoughts or activities that are no longer helpful for us.
• MOVING HOUSE: These dreams can help us see how our life can change for the better (if we are moving to a nice house), or how we can avoid bad choices (if it feels negative).
• DODGY FOUNDATIONS: I have sometimes dreamed that my house was sloping or crooked. I took this to indicate that some of my basic assumptions were wrong and needed rethinking.

These are all good dreams to pray about, so we can cooperate with the changes that God wants to bring. I have these dreams so often that I’ve become quite used to the fact that my life is a constant journey of transformation!

Larger houses in dreams

Sometimes a house can represent a group of people or organisation. If this is the case, it is usually a larger house or building. We can gain some clues about what area of our life it represents from some of the following:

• The type of building
• The size of building
• The people who are in it with us

If you think about it, houses and buildings are usually made of bricks, and each brick is like a person. So a house can represent any organisation made up of people.

As a general rule, the larger the house/building, the larger the group of people/organisation it represents.

The size of the house gives you an idea of the size of the organisation that it is representing in our dream.

Meanings of other buildings in dreams

Here is a list of some buildings that I (and people I know) have dreamed of, and what they turned out to mean.

Remember, in your dream it may mean something different, but hopefully these examples will help you think about the building in a symbolic way.

In addition:

• Consider whether the building seems positive or negative in your dream and how you feel about it – as this will help you link it to real life situations
• I have written a general guide for understanding dream symbols, and this article builds on that. You can find it here: 10 simple clues for understanding dream symbols.

Church buildings in dreams

I have found that church buildings in dreams commonly relate to our spiritual life.

• A CHURCH: Being at our current real-life church can be about what God is doing in our spiritual life at the moment, or what he is going to do.
• A CHURCH WE USED TO GO TO: This is often about an area of our spiritual life we should have moved on from, but haven’t quite managed to yet! I.e., it is symbolising an area of our life which is not yet ‘conformed to Christ’, in a biblical sense.
• A LARGER CHURCH or CATHEDRAL: This could symbolise a bigger spiritual organisation such as a family of churches. A huge cathedral could be a global ministry, denomination, or even the worldwide church.

Although dreams set in our church building could be about our church family itself, I find that God uses a variety of different images to symbolise church life. For example, the action could be set at the church leader’s house or their spouse’s house. Our church family could be represented by our own house, our natural family, or a large family gathering. Lakes and pools are also common symbols for groups/communities such as churches.

Workplaces and offices in dreams

Dreaming of a workplace is commonly about what we do (i.e. our ‘work’). It could be about our ‘ministry’. Or it could be more generally about the way we work/operate.

• CURRENT WORKPLACE: Dreaming of our current workplace could be about our actual job. But I find it is more usually about what we are meant to be doing, or the way we are currently operating.
• OLD WORK PLACE: This is usually about an old way of doing things, such as an old habit. It could be our ‘old self’ in a biblical sense, as in a character trait that has not yet been renewed.
• A LARGE OFFICE BLOCK / WORKPLACE: This would normally represent a larger business, ministry or organisation.

The same principle applies for work as it does for churches: I have found that when it is about my actual job, God often uses a different setting to represent it. This is not always the case though. Keep an open mind and consider all possibilities!

More types of buildings in dreams

Here are some more common buildings and what they might mean:

• CASTLE: A castle could be positive, for example if we are protected within it; the bible describes God as a safe fortress. But I find that castles and towers usually represent what we call a ‘stronghold’: which is something God wants to set us free from – most often a false mindset or belief. If we have a dream like this, we can start by asking God to show us what it is!
• FIRE STATION: Fire in dreams is often the Holy Spirit, so fire stations could also be about the work of the Holy Spirit. See my article on fire for more ideas about what fire could mean.
• HOLIDAY HOMES and HOTELS: Holiday homes are usually positive for me, representing being at rest or at peace; they could also be about spending time away with God and spiritual refreshment. A common feature of hotels and holiday rentals (like Airbnbs) is that they are temporary places to stay – so they might represent temporary situations in our life.
• HOSPITAL: A hospital could represent a church/ministry acting as a place of healing. If we are in hospital or going in for treatment, it could be that God is doing/going to do a healing or transformational work in our lives. If we are working in the hospital, maybe God is going to use us to heal others.
• POLICE STATION: Policemen have mostly been positive in my dreams, and have commonly represented angelic help – often bringing correction, a message from God, or protection. A police station could be on a similar theme. But they could also be negative, depending on the context.
• PRISON: Dreaming of being in a prison suggests needing to be set free from something, or feeling trapped/frustrated. However, sometimes God himself restricts us for a time, for the purpose of transforming us and preparing us for our destiny. In Genesis 39-41 we read how Joseph went through a time of being in prison for this very purpose. The dream context will tell us whether this is the case and how we should respond.
• SCHOOL, UNIVERSITY or COLLEGE: This is usually about something God is showing or teaching us, i.e. something we are meant to be learning or understanding. The stage of school or college (junior, senior, university, etc.) usually indicates how new this area is in our life; whether we are just starting to learn it, or whether it is something we are maturing in.

If you actually work in one of these places, the meaning could well be be different for you – it could just be a normal setting to illustrate things that are going on in your life. (See ‘workplace dreams’ above).

Conclusion

Houses in dreams usually represent aspects of our life. Larger houses and buildings usually represent groups of people such as churches, businesses and organisations. In general, the larger the building, the larger the group of people it represents.

Here are a few closing thoughts:

• A house or building in a dream could represent any number of things. The above ideas should give you a good starting point. 
• I believe that only God can tell us what a symbol means in a specific dream, so you could try asking Him!
• Consider the colour, atmosphere and context of the dream to see whether the house or building is being used in a positive or negative sense.
• In additional to the meanings that I have shared, remember that it could mean something personal or culturally significant to you, that isn’t mentioned here.

When you figure out what a symbol means in your dream, make sure to keep a record of it somewhere, for future reference!

And most importantly – don’t give up! It takes time to learn your own personal dream language.

Have fun dreaming about houses and buildings! If this article has helped you interpret a dream, please do like or share this post!